Japanese fishermen net bag with nearly $150,000

A FISHING boat off Japan netted a bag packed with ¥11 million ($135,000) in cash off the tsunami-ravaged northeastern coast.

The cash-laden catch was probably swept away from its still-unknown owner in the tsunami seven months ago.

A trawler pulled the bag with more than 1000 notes worth ¥10,000 ($122.84) each from the bottom of the sea on October 8 off the coast of the Ofunato city in Iwate Prefecture, city official Kou Ueno said .

"We think it is related to the disaster as no-one is going to throw this kind of thing away on purpose," Mr Ueno said.

He said other safes and envelopes filled with cash have been turning up in droves since the 9.0 magnitude earthquake devastated this nation's coastal area, setting off a giant tsunami that left about 20,000 people dead or missing.

The nation has won praise for goodwill and honesty for reporting the found cash.

In the latest case, if no-one claims the cash over the next six months, the money will go to the finders, although a legal ruling may be necessary to determine whether the captain of the ship, the crew or the ship's owner is the true finder, Mr Ueno said.

There was no clear way to identify the original owner, and so some information about the bag and its contents are being kept secret to allow the city to determine whether anyone who comes forward is the rightful owner, he said.